Green Plum and Bamboo Horses
by Nymphadora1196
Summary: 23 years ago Hinamori was reborn in the human world. Now she is facing death once again. Crossing between the threshold of life and death, join her on the final journey through her snapshots of life, friendship, and love. Sequel to Gone but not Forgotten.


Huge thanks to my betas, I don't know what I'll do without them... post stories with horrible grammar, I suppose.

Disclaimer: I do not, and probably never will, own Bleach.

* * *

Green Plums and Bamboo Horses: a Chinese expression describing a couple that has known each other since they were little; childhood sweethearts.

* * *

"Death isn't the final stop in life," he had said.

I am dying. I have walked nearly to the end of the pathway of my life, and my journey is going to end soon.

I lie helplessly on the hospital bed, feeling the cool liquid from the IV drip flow into my arm. An electrocardiogram is attached to my body, beeping every time my heart gives an unsteady pump. The machine sits beside an open window and through it I can see the rising sun stain the surrounding sky a pinkish-orange color.

_I guess I lived to see another day after all._

When I close my eyes, I can feel the faint fluttered beating of my heart, worn and tired from the twenty-three years of struggling to keep my body alive.

I have always known I would die young.

Born with a congenital heart defect, I stayed away from any physical activity that would strain my heart. Throughout my elementary school career, I had sat out during gym and shied away from classmates during break, staying in the classroom by myself. I was a loner through and through and would have continued to be so through junior and senior high school.

Until _he_ appeared in my life.

I first met Hitsugaya Toushirou thirteen years ago on the sidewalk to the park near my house. My family had recently moved to Kanagawa when Father got a job placement at the local design studio. However, this wasn't the first time our family had been in Kanagawa; the summer when I was five, we spent a week on the beach for vacations. I don't remember much about it, and the photos of the sea were all that could remind me of that supposedly wonderful time. Toushirou always insisted that we had known each other before we moved here, but I remember it very clearly, that sunny day in late August.

My parents were unpacking our stuff and, being bored, I decided to go to the park. The sun was casting a warm afternoon glow on the sidewalk and looking up, I saw a boy my age with extremely unique coloring passing me. At the time, I had never known anyone with such distinctly white hair; he had a strange yet familiar vibe coming off him that made me blurt out – "Do I know you?" He had looked at me with such astonished teal eyes that, to my great embarrassment and now – many years later – amusement, I turned on my heels and ran for it.

It was the start of a great friendship.

* * *

I wake up to the quiet beeping of the electrocardiogram and the blinking red light of the IV drip beside my bed. The blindingly white sun is higher up in the sky, radiant and brilliant, burning the ground with its heat. I watch the second and minute hands of the clock on the wall across from me tick by. It is strange, almost like seeing my very own Reaper walking closer to take my life. I don't want to give up on my life, but I have always accepted the notion of an early death; it will be a release from this cumbersome body.

I grin wryly at myself; _can you accept death and __yet __don't__not__ want to die?_

A nurse walks in with a practiced sympathetic smile and asks me if I wanted anything. I want to smile at her, but shake my head instead – the action makes me faint and dizzy. I don't want anything but Toushirou and the memories we share: to relive them as though they occurred yesterday.

Tomorrow, we would be graduating from elementary school. I had snuck into our classroom and carved "_Momo and Toushirou_" and underneath that, the word "_together_" on the bottom of our chairs. You would have to put the chairs together to read it, so hopefully no one would find out.

Sitting in the empty room, I was strongly reminded of the first day of school. The teacher had already assigned our seats, but Toushirou – we had only known each other for about a week at the time – stared down the kid that was supposed to sit beside me and then took the seat.

I had always stayed in the classroom and worked on homework during break. It was probably for this reason why most of my classmates ostracized me. I was friendless for the greater part of my life. Apparently, so was Toushirou: the other kids found his cold attitude and white hair intimidating and eagerly avoided him, so Toushirou stayed indoors with me. He would doze off with his snowy head resting on the desktop while I dutifully completed my assignments. A comfortable blanket of silence would settle around us.

It's funny how I didn't carve "_forever_" under the word "_together_" when I had the chance. Maybe I had always known, somewhere deep down in my soul, we'd never be together in the end.

Like now.

I had fainted during class yesterday. The professor called in an ambulance and I was rushed to the hospital. That very afternoon, Toushirou left because of an urgent family matter, but he refused to tell me what the problem was.

He was leaving the country. He was leaving me.

Even though he had promised me that he would come back, I still had a feeling that we wouldn't meet again. He seemed to have read my mind, because then he said, "Death isn't the final stop in life."

Can I trust those words? I can trust Toushirou with my life, so what do I fear?

Him leaving me?

Death?

Or something else?

* * *

After starting junior high, everyone sat alone at their own desk. Toushirou now sat behind me.

Once again, _that_ seat was taken after the poor guy sitting there lost a staring contest with Toushirou. Honestly, he may act all mature and mighty, but sometimes Toushirou acts like a regular kid.

I became less shy and more open with others during this period, in contrast with Toushirou's aversion to interactions with other people. Despite his stoic and silent attitude, I noticed that the other girls were no longer intimidated by his icy exterior. They would try to talk to him in the hallways, during break, and then force themselves at _our_ table during lunch. I hated that change and I also hated to admit the fact I thought those girls were insufferable. I was jealous of Toushirou's inexplicable popularity with the opposite sex.

During our time at junior high, something else happened. I didn't know when or how it started, but the friendship we shared was changing and we were growing distant. Our walks to school and back home were awkwardly silent and though we still walked together, he was walking _beside_ me, rather than _with_ me.

Was I being paranoid? Apart from Mother and Father, Toushirou was the most important person in the world to me. I would hate to lose him.

* * *

The white hospital sheets fade in and out of my sight as I drift in the depths of my own consciousness. The monotonous beeping and the glaring midday sun keep me far too aware of my surroundings – much more than I want to be. The laughter from visiting relatives coming through the walls of the neighboring room makes me painfully aware of how alone I am. After spending thirteen years of my life with him, I have become accustomed to Toushirou's company, and now, without him, I am floundering.

I am running on the last dregs of life still in me. It is like holding onto strands of withered grass growing on the cliff side, holding on for dear life as the strands snap away and the bottomless darkness below loomed upward, engulfing my being.

The darkness is called death.

* * *

"Shitamori-fujin, is Momo home?"

Toushirou was gruff and rude towards everyone – including me sometimes – but he was always perfectly behaved towards my parents.

He was standing by the doorway, a crooked grin on his face. I was suddenly struck by the fact that for the six years I had known him, this was the first time he had smiled. I had laughed at the goofy expression on his face and then let him lead me out the house after promising my parents that we would be back soon.

"Where are we going, Shiro-chan?"

"Stop calling me Shiro-chan, it's Hitsugaya-tai–"

Toushirou suddenly broke off in the middle of the sentence and flushed a very light shade of pink. He pulled me brusquely onto a faded wooden bench under a tree.

"We're sixteen now. Stop calling me by that demeaning name and act your age."

I looked away. For someone like me, every day you were alive and growing older meant that you had one less day to be alive in the future.

One more day closer to death.

I didn't really mind before, didn't mind that I lacked things and experiences other kids my age have. I didn't even mind the fact that my heart will suddenly give out on me and I'd just expire.

Not anymore.

Meeting Toushirou had changed my outlook on life. He made me realize how much I could have and how much I would miss out on if I die.

I didn't want to die.

Not anymore.

"Happy birthday, Momo."

Something dropped onto my lap and snapped me out of my daytime musings. I looked out of the corner of my eye and saw a small box neatly wrapped with peach patterned wrapping paper, complete with a delicate green bow on top.

"Aww, Toushirou, you know I don't –"

_You know I don't celebrate my birthdays._

"Open it. You only have a birthday once a year, might as well enjoy it," he shrugged.

I reluctantly peeled the wrappings away and opened my present. A very light bluish-green cloth and a dark blue ribbon lay quietly on the velvety insides of the box. I twisted my ponytail into a bun and wrapped it up with his gift.

"Thank you, Toushirou."

"It's Hitsugaya-kun, and you're welcome."

We walked home in silence. My face felt hot and I fidgeted nervously with the piece of ribbon hanging from my hair as he stared at me with deep, unreadable teal eyes.

_How can he not look at the road and still not trip?_

The short walk home had never seemed so long.

I turned the doorknob and pushed the front door open mechanically. I could still feel Toushirou's gaze burn into my back and it made me nervous and self-conscious and my heart was frantically drumming blood through my veins. Turning around, I started to close the door.

"Good night, Momo, you look nice today."

His voice floated through the diminishing crack in the doorway and I caught that uneven grin on his face the moment the door closed.

_Thank you._

* * *

"Come with me, Hinamori-chan."

The hazy shape of a tall, lean man with silvery hair said. He wore a black kimono used for funeral occasions.

"This is where the Central 46 resides; the area is off limits, why have you brought me here?"

_Where am I?_

_Who was this man?_

"There's someone I want you to see."

_Someone you want me … to see?_

_So… familiar…_

As if in a trance, I turned around. A tall figure stood at the wide entrance, the blinding light streaming through and around him, casting his face in shadows.

The scraping sound of blade against sheath;

The glaring flash of light on metal;

The tearing of fabric and pierced flesh;

And blood splattering, red droplets of life that hit the wooden panels with deadly finality.

My eyes flies open and I bolt upright on my bed. Glancing at the clock, I am surprised that it is nearly a quarter to four. _Time is passing faster than I thought._ Closing my eyes, I let the images play though my head, letting relief wash over me as I took deep calming breaths; listening to the beeping beside my bed decelerate and return to a normal pace.

_It was just a dream. _

Ever since I was about four or five, I have always had these strange dreams, visions of another lifetime where people wore black funeral kimonos and carried katanas.

I was one of them.

The people in my unconscious nocturnal reveries always have blurred faces. I have no idea who they were, but every time I wake up, there's always this sense of loss and familiarity that accompanied the fading dream.

I have never told anyone of my dreams, not my parents, not even Toushirou. I was afraid, afraid that they will just laugh at my weird dreams and not take me seriously. So I kept my dreams to myself.

They are my secrets.

* * *

The week before the end of our last year at high school, I came down with the flu. Weak and feverish, I took sick leave from school for three days. My parents were out of town, so Toushirou skipped school three days to stay with me.

By the second night, I was angry and frustrated with my vulnerable body and immune system. I had a splitting headache and teary, blurred vision that refused to go away. The thunderstorm that threatened to rage above us didn't help either. I hated the rain.

Finally, Toushirou had enough of my complaints and whinings. He climbed into my bed and drew the cover over us. His warm arms wrapped around me, but in comparison to my high fever, his embrace was cool and welcomed. His chest reverberated with his voice as he tried to comfort me without much success – Toushirou was awkward with his usual gruffness and I wanted to laugh. Tears came instead and I found myself sobbing into his shirt until I slipped into my own unconsciousness some time later.

The sun cast a pale yellow glow on everything it touched. My nose was still stuffy and my eyes felt puffy, but I could hardly complain. The fever went down and the headache was gone. I stirred and felt a pair of arms around me.

_Toushirou!?_

His white hair was ruffled and it gleamed in the morning light. His brow was unfurrowed; the customary scowl wiped away by the peace of sleep and his chest rose and fell steadily with each breath. Looking at Toushirou's perfect sleeping face in the light, a strange thrill stirred in my chest and I had a sudden urge to kiss him. _Go on! He won't know._ The mischievous part of my mind said. _Don't! He probably doesn't feel that way towards you! _The sensible half said. Finally, daring trumped logic and I cautiously leaned forward. His breath was light and feathery; it tickled my cheek as I quickly brushed my lips against the corner of his mouth.

His eyes snapped open.

_Uh oh…_

He was never asleep in the first place.

* * *

The setting sun's warm red light is overpowered by the pale bluish-white glare of the fluorescent hospital bulbs overhead. A nurse walks in with a tray of food. She smiles and sets the tray on the table beside me. I give her a weak smile, "I'm not hungry, please take it away."

_There really isn't any point to eat when I'm going to die in a few hours._

She purses her lips and frowns slightly at my words.

"You must eat, Shitamori-san," she shakes her head at me, "you'll get better faster with more energy and nutrients."

I sigh inwardly and nod with resignation, turning to pick at my food. Hospital food is never good – I have learned that during my numerous stays here – and this meal is particularly bland and tasteless.

I wish Toushirou is here. The dying sun is particularly magnificent today, the brilliant red and orange and yellows dominating the distant horizon.

Toushirou likes to watch the sun sink down below the ground. Ever since we first met, he would drag me to watch it after dinner. I had initially protested, saying I could have used the time to do other things. But time passed and I started to enjoy the vibrant colors and the quiet privity pervading the air around us. After spending more than half of my life watching the sun set, I've unconsciously made it a habit to do so too.

As the radiant fireball starts to diminish in size, the sky is stained blood-red and the beautifully ominous color sent chills down my back.

_Please, Toushirou, hurry back. I want to see you, just one last time._

Finished with my dinner, I push the now-empty tray away.

* * *

I returned home from University during midterms last year. After a reunion dinner of sorts with Toushirou and my parents, he took me to the park that we used to go to when we were little and led me to the bench where he gave me my birthday present so many years ago.

"I have something to show you," he had said.

I looked around, the old park was empty and nothing was out of place, Toushirou didn't seem to be hiding anything behind his back either.

"What is it?" I was curious and slightly doubtful; Toushirou was not one to play tricks, although he sometimes did that when we were young.

"Close your eyes," he commanded.

I stared at him in disbelief. We were not little kids anymore, what was with all this mystery and surprise?

"What! Why?" I was exasperated, "Oh, just tell me."

"You'll find out," Toushirou half-growled, "Close your eyes."

Obediently, I complied and let him grab my hand and carefully guide me away from the bench.

"Alright, you can look now," his gruff voice came from my left.

I opened my eyes and blinked. We were in the clearing behind a row of trees by the park, and in front of me…

… Was a pair of chairs.

_What the?!_

"I'm pretty sure today's not April first, Toushirou, and you shouldn't—"

"You're not looking, stupid. Look."

Still doubtful, I tentatively walked over to inspect the chairs. They looked normal enough.

And then realization dawned on me when I noticed a long scratch on one's surface.

_It couldn't be…_

I flipped the chairs over, and there they were, "_Momo and Toushirou, together_", unchanged after the passing of ten years. All that was different was the neat outline of a heart carved around the words. My eyes started to water.

…_Toushirou…_

But he was already beside me, a hand on my shoulder, teal eyes burning intently into mine, and a small velvet case in his palm. I felt his breath, hot on the side of my neck as he whispered into my ear.

"Will you marry me, Momo?"

And we sat on the small chairs watching the sun disappear under the distant horizon.

* * *

I feel like I am floating, so light and weightless as I survey my body lying lifelessly on the white bed. The sky is dark and moonless outside and the glow from the ceiling light makes my ashen and resigned face look green.

_I never got the chance to see you one last time, Toushirou._

The nurse walks in to take my empty food tray away. One look at the silent electrocardiogram is enough to send her rushing across the room, her hand flying towards the red button on a panel in the wall.

Watching her hurried efforts to revive my body, I suddenly realize, _she can't see me!_ Looking down, I see a broken chain attached to the middle of my chest. I pull on the chain gently. It hurt.

Remembering Toushirou's words before he left, I suddenly feel a tiny glimmer of hope.

_So death wasn't the final stop in life after all._

It is then I hear the most glorious sound in my life, the familiar low tenor that had accompanied me for more than half of my life.

I whirl around.

Toushirou is standing there, dressed in the familiar black kimono I have seen in my dreams, a katana strapped to his back with a green sash. He is emanating that familiar sensation I had felt on the sidewalk thirteen years ago; it makes my breath catch and my fingers tingle.

My still heart flutters wildly. I can hardly believe my eyes. _Toushirou… he was part of that _other_ lifetime! _Happiness and joy floods my chest and rises to my throat, freezing my voice and then traveling upward, finding release in my eyes.

And then I know I am dead because his words sent me straight to heaven.

"Momo," he says.

"Let's go home."

* * *

And here you have it. Comments and reviews are nice, I can't write fluff, and you have no idea how hard I tried, so, if you see places for me to improve on, please don't hesitate to tell me.


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